Asher in Israland

let's do the lobster quadrille again, it's just a jump to the left....

Saturday, October 08, 2011

More things I got up to

A few thoughts after taking part in Spencer Tunick's installation art at the Dead Sea

First. Upon arrival, it was drummed into us not to get undressed until we're told to. Needless to say, we were not a collection of people with an aversion to undressing, and we had gone there precisely for that, so I wasn't surprised when a spontaneous wave of undressing spread through everyone, and there we all were, as nature intended.

Now, the state of being naked is a state of being exposed, and vulnerable, two things which describe the state of the Dead Sea. If we want the next generation to be able to enjoy it, we have to undo the damage caused by the previous generation, and not wait for the next one to fix it, as there isn't time.

Finally, the nudity there was a way of being free and liberated. Hard not to think of a young man, who I don't know if he would have chosen to take part in the installation or not, but we have to do everything possible to give him the freedom he'd been missing for over 5(!) years now – Gilead Shalit